


Reluctant Heroes

by 22Bean22



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan, 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia
Genre: Alternate Universe - No Quirks (My Hero Academia), Angst, Attack on Titan Universe, Bakugou Katsuki Swears A Lot, But it's AOT-verse, Dabi is a Todoroki, F/F, F/M, Gore, Human!Tokoyami, Hurt/Comfort, Just BNHA characters, M/M, Pervert Mineta Minoru, Slow Burn, Slow To Update, Todoroki Enji | Endeavor's Bad Parenting, Visible!Hagakure, of course there is, slow everything tbh
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-03
Updated: 2019-02-21
Packaged: 2019-10-19 14:01:22
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 17,050
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17602697
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/22Bean22/pseuds/22Bean22
Summary: Humanity, trapped behind the fifty-metre walls that provide them little safety from the gigantic, cannibalistic creatures that roam the world outside. After the passing of one-hundred years, the human race has given up on all hope, resigning themselves to the sorry lives they live as cattle. However... There is one group of unique, quirky people, who are not willing to give up just yet. They cling onto the little threads of determination they have left, different reasons and different backgrounds propelling them forward to their dreams.And they go by the name of the 104th Cadet Training Corps.





	1. {1} [Ochako]

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, and welcome to my completely self-indulgent crossover fic! Just a little briefing:  
> -It's set in the AOT universe, but no AOT characters are in it, so if you've come seeking some Levi then I'm afraid this fic is not for you  
> -It would probably a good idea to have watched both respective anime's before reading, as this fic basically follows the plot of AOT, but with the MHA characters to spice things up a bit  
> -(Spoilers for AOT) I have created a Titan trio, who enlist in the 104th, but are secretly traitors. These three characters are from class 1A, and I picked out the three that I thought would suit the roles best, so please do not hate me if I made your favourite character a villain  
> -Final point: I will be switching POV's each chapter, so just know that I will not be writing as Uraraka the entire way through :)
> 
> I hope you enjoy!
> 
> (Cross-posted to Wattpad under the name of 22BlackSpaceCats22)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ochako is 13 in this chapter :)

Ochako could feel her own shaky breaths echoing around the chambers of her mind, and the rapid thrumming of her heart against her ribcage. It felt quite comforting, actually, the noisiness of her own body reminding her that she was one of the lucky ones - one of those still alive. 

She had always thought of herself as being a little unlucky, ever since she was a child. It had been a bitter feeling, one that she wanted nothing more than to be rid of. Her family had a nice house, one that her father had built with his own two hands, and she grew up with lovely neighbours, who even had a son around the same age as her. However, as perfect as that life had seemed, Ochako had always been slightly envious of the richer people who lived in the inner walls, such as Wall Sina, or Wall Rose. She and her family were amongst the poor, the farming villages in the outer wall - Wall Maria - which supplied the rest of civilisation with food.

That was how the wall system worked. It was unfair, undeniably so, but there was nothing anyone could do about it, especially not the daughter of a builder in the very outermost town of Shiganshina. She had seen maps of how everything was set out in school, the three faintly circular walls that stretched out across the land, with the extra semi-circles that stuck out from each side of all three walls. Everyone in her class had gazed upon the inner walls with a mixture of curiosity and jealousy, their childish eyes sparkling with a naïve light. 

A small voice in the back of Ochako's mind wondered if any of them were still alive. 

Her best friend and neighbour, Tenya, held no sign of envy in his eyes. In fact, Ochako could remember his reaction clearly, how he had straightened up eagerly when the teacher announced they would be focusing on the geography of the walls. It was no secret that his older brother, Tensei, was a member of the Military Police, who were the Regiment that oversaw the law inside the walls. They were the equivalent of heroes for the young children of Shiganshina, who had known nothing but the bustling, stinking streets of their town for their entire life. Whenever Tensei returned to visit his family, Ochako and Tenya would find their houses and gardens filled up with families, hoping to catch a glimpse of Tensei, or to hear one of his tales. After all, becoming a member of the Military Police meant that he got an immediate pass into Wall Sina, which was a luxurious haven that no one in Shiganshina could even begin to dream of.

Tensei's position had guaranteed him safety. Ochako only wished that he had decided to wait one more day before coming back to visit his family, because if he had, perhaps he would still be alive. 

She shook the thoughts from her head, trying to concentrate on her breathing again. Small sounds such as the thudding of her heart and the rasping of her breath could only give so much comfort when the entire world seemed to be screaming. Her hands trembled, and she tried to steady them between her knees as nausea rose in her chest.

A firm hand, skin hardened from countless days spent doing hard work in the burning sun, came to rest in a familiar spot on Ochako's head. Her father stroked her gently, a gesture that he would always do when Ochako was upset. The warmth his hand granted her was comforting, far more so than her own heartbeat, and Ochako realised that maybe it would have helped her more to concentrate on the breathing bodies of her parents, rather than her own.

It was a lot more than she could say for Tenya. She glanced up, meeting the warm chocolate-brown eyes of her father. They gazed down at her with a look of concern, affection and understanding. The safety that his eyes brought her was almost enough to make her begin crying on the spot, and frankly, it was a miracle that she hadn't burst into tears already. However, a quick glance over her father's shoulder reminded her that her mother also was still alive, and apart from her home, Ochako hadn't really lost that much in the Titan attack. Again, it was a lot more than she could say for Tenya.

Deciding to stray from the warmth of her parents, she turned to her other side, where her best friend sat hunched against the wooden wall of the boat behind him. He looked very different to how Ochako would usually see him. Of course, given that they had been best friends since childhood, she had seen Tenya at his worst points, but even those had been full of life, an explosion of hand-gestures, raised voice and stern expressions. Now, though, he looked completely lifeless, which was what made Ochako so scared. 

He was missing his trademark grey-rimmed glasses, which had been lost far earlier in the attack. Ochako wasn't completely sure when he would be able to get a new pair, and the thought of Tenya walking around without his glasses really was an odd thought. He wasn't bothering to hide in on himself as most of the other occupants of the boat were, and instead held his head high, as he usually did. Although, instead of his normal proud, determined expression he wore one of emptiness, like a memory wiped from existence.

Ochako reached out a hand, hesitating for a moment before cautiously placing it on Tenya's shoulder. The warm sensation of contact had done a lot for her, so perhaps she would be able to help Tenya in the same way. 

Unfortunately, the boy remained completely unresponsive, his pale face angled to the sky as he stared up at it in a numb defiance. In that moment, Ochako felt for the first time that Tenya was completely out of her reach. How would one comfort a friend who had just seen his mother and brother die in equally brutal ways right in front of him? Ochako knew that there wasn't really anything she could do, apart from keep her hand on Tenya's shoulder. 

She increased her grip slightly, giving a small squeeze, as if scared that he would fade away if she let go. After the events of the last hour, it wasn't too surprising that she felt that way, and the blank stare that had been fixed on Tenya's face ever since he had watched Tensei vanish into the mouth of the Titan almost made Ochako think that something was seeking out her best friend, to consume him from the inside. She knew what it was. Vengeance. 

All she could do was hope that Tenya was above that. 

He was always full of justice, full of morals, but she doubted anyone was truly above an emotion as blinding as vengeance. 

Her arm was beginning to ache from its trying position, but she kept it placed firmly where it was, shuffling her body slightly so that her back was up against the wall. It provided her with a view that she wasn't entirely comfortable with, one of smoke streaming into the red-streaked sky above, and ruined houses gradually getting smaller as the boat left them behind. 

She closed her eyes, allowing her head to lean completely on the wall behind her. It wasn't comfortable, but the pain provided a sick reminder that she was one of the lucky ones - the lucky ones still alive. 

Then again, was being alive in this place really such a gift?

\--------------------

They day had started off normally. 

Ochako had woken up to a sun full of warmth, casting golden rays across the small garden at the front of her house. It was a weekend, meaning no school, which was a relief to Ochako. Despite increasing her 'valuable knowledge of life' as Tenya liked to call it, Ochako had grown to find school rather dull. She'd always wanted to be more active in lessons, instead of sitting in a stuffy classroom all day, and would come to crave the sporting sessions her class would have. Unfortunately, because of her round cheeks, small build and overall fluffy appearance, she had never really been taken seriously by the rest of her classmates in any kind of physical activity. 

Anyway, the weather had immediately put her in good spirits. So many things were going right for her that morning: the weather was beautiful, there was no school, and Tensei would be coming home for a few nights later on. It all seemed perfect.

Things had progressed as they should have. Ochako and her parents headed over to the Iida household, where Tenya's mother had already begun preparing lunch for Tensei's arrival. Ochako could remember how amazing it had smelt, and how her stomach had rumbled embarrassingly in that moment.

When Tensei arrived, Ochako couldn't help but think that he looked even more saintly than usual. He was wearing his typical Military Police uniform, the forest-green cape draped over his shoulders. He had mentioned with amusement that the reason behind his somewhat lateness was that a few of the local kids had asked to try it on, and he couldn't have rejected them.

The meal still had a little while to go, so Tenya's father had suggested they went outside for a little while to get some fresh air. Ochako's mother had offered to help helping cook lunch, but Tenya's mother had stubbornly refused, announcing that it was 'her house, her duty.'

About half an hour later, that woman was dead. Crushed to death by a piece of rubble that had been sent flying from the Titan's kick which brought down the wall. Ochako could still remember the moment when it happened.

How everything seemed to be so peaceful, when suddenly a jagged flash of lightning hit the ground just outside of the wall. It had been extremely loud, and so powerful that the entire ground seemed to give a tremendous shake. Ochako had been knocked off her feet, her entire being seeming to turn weightless for a second, yet something about that flash of lightning made her stomach drop. She had never felt so disorientated in her life. 

The world seemed to go quiet just as quickly as it had erupted, leaving Ochako to sit up with grass clinging to her hair and clothes. Tenya helped her back to her feet, and she dimly realised that he'd managed to keep upright during the sudden quake. 

Tensei had made a passing comment on how odd it was to see lightning, especially when the sky was as clear as it had been that morning. 

That was their first signal that something was wrong. 

The second signal was far more dramatic, very grotesque. Ochako had still been staring up at the wall in wonder, despite it being quite a way away, the lightning had just seemed so... close. Because her attention was already drawn to the same spot where the bolt of energy had struck, she was quick to notice the steam rising from a random spot behind the wall.

"Tenya-kun…" She spoke slowly, tugging at his sleeve to get his attention, keeping her eyes fixed on the rising steam. She heard him make an intrigued noise from beside her, as his gaze presumably also found the steam.

"Hm... Now that is odd. Perhaps the lightning caught a tree on the other side of the wall and set it on fire," He speculated out-loud. "I'm sure it's nothing to worry about-" 

And, as if acting just to spite Tenya's words, the wall exploded. 

At least, that was what it seemed like from Ochako's position on the ground. Dust gathered around the foot of the wall, where terrifyingly large rocks were being thrown out from the force of whatever brought it down. They were huge, as expected of the building blocks of a fifty-metre high wall, and the group could only watch in horror as one of those pieces soared over their heads to land with a deafening crunch on the houses behind them.

Everything after that seemed to go by in a blur. Her father was the first to act, lifting Ochako up with a firm grip to place her over his shoulder. It was something had he would do as a game when she was younger, all harmless play, but seemed to finally be coming in useful in a horrifying situation. 

Tenya was shouting, Tensei was shouting, and Ochako wasn't even aware of her own screaming until her throat became too sore to continue. That was when they heard the first cry from the unfortunate people who owned homes even closer to the now-demolished wall. 

"Titans!" 

Funny how a single word could cause so much panic.

The cry seemed to spur Tensei into action, as he took control of the situation in a way that Ochako was sure only a member of the Military Police could. He commanded his father, who had previously been trying to sort through the mess of splinters that had once been his house, to carry Tenya. Ochako's best friend also seemed to be completely paralyzed by the attack, his only movement being the violent twitching of his hands. 

Ochako was able to spare a glance behind her, to where their houses once stood, side-by-side. Now all that remained were piles of wood, stone and straw, with the boulder resting soundly on top of it all. She gritted her teeth and looked away, not wanting to think about the condition Tenya's mother would be in after that. 

However, when her eyes met the sight opposite, she wanted nothing more than to turn back. Unfortunately, a cold fear seemed to grasp her entire being, rendering her useless. She couldn't turn away, not even when he father began to run, with her still slung over his shoulder, in the direction that Ochako vaguely realised would be the river. 

She also realised, vaguely, that Tenya was still shouting. 

But in that moment, all she could do was stare at the Titans. Never-ending streams of them seemed to be entering in through the gap in the wall, their lumbering figures gradually getting smaller as the group of humans retreated further. Despite the distance, Ochako could still make out their gaping mouths, their irregular shapes and their lumbering movements as they lifted small, ant-liked specs towards their ashen lips. She realised with a pang that those would be other humans.

However, the sight that had her completely immobilized with terror was the big Titan, which she could only think would be the product of the lightning bolt they had witnessed earlier. It was huge, sixty-metres tall at least, with the majority of its head looming up from the other side of the wall. Ochako felt bile rise in the back of her throat, whether it was from her awful sensitivity to motion sickness, or the vileness of the Titan's face, she forced herself to keep from throwing up. 

It could have been a normal, over-sized Titan, if not for the muscles that covered the outer layer of its skin. Red tendrils wrapped themselves around the creature's face, twisting and turning to fill different crevices until it roughly formed a head. Two dark brown eyes resided in amongst the raw flesh, glinting in the sunlight. 

A loud curse from ahead drew her attention away from the Titan, and she glanced in the direction of the voice. She couldn't find the origin of the shout, and for a moment she wondered if it had just been a random person in the crowd who'd let their panic out in a sudden cry. Until suddenly, something lurking in a nearby alley caught her eye- 

When did the Titans overtake them?!? 

Ochako felt her eyes widen in horror, finally being able to see one of the monstrosities up close. Bead-like eyes resting in a squashed face which seemed to be permanently fixed in the same grinning expression, the Titan was just as ugly as the stories said. Its skin was a fleshy colour, matted hair lying on disproportionally-sized shoulders. And one of its stubby hands was reaching out toward a little girl in the crowd. 

It all happened so fast. Tensei moved with such speed that Ochako could only believe he had some sort of supernatural power to allow himself to move quickly. The girl was staring up at the Titan, her eyes glistening with fear and unshed tears as she sensed her nearing-doom. People around her scrambled out of the Titan's way, clearing the area around the girl as she stared up at the Titan, unmoving, presumably from terror or shock. Ochako could understand how she felt, as her own legs still refused to move. 

It was quite astonishing, how cowardly humans were. As soon as the Titan made itself known, everyone was rushing to get as far away as possible, paying no mind to the danger the little girl was in. How much work would it be to pick her up, as Ochako's father had done to her? Speaking of which, where were this girl's parents? Perhaps they had been separated, or they had simply fled earlier, leaving their daughter for dead... Or perhaps they were... 

In any case, the only person willing to act in that moment was Tensei, and it was both a blessing and a curse.

He reached the girl with impossible speed, scooping her up as he rushed past. Obviously he couldn't enter the alleyway, so the only thing to do was re-enter the crowd. By that time, the Titan's outstretched hand had reached its mark; the little girl. Although, instead of the frail, feminine body it had been expecting to find, the hungry fingers were met with the soft fabric of a Military Police uniform cape. 

Tensei was lifted into the air as if he weighed nothing. He let go of the little girl as soon as his feet left the ground, and she rolled ungracefully onto the cobbled street, the fall seeming to break her out of her trance. She scrambled up, small skirt dirtied and ripped as she scurried into the crowd.

By that time, Tensei had been raised to the Titan's mouth. 

Ochako buried her face in her father's neck - she didn't want to look. The crunch of bones was still audible, though, and she felt something warm, wet and metallic-scented hit her cheek. 

Tenya finally fell silent.

\--------------------

Back on the boat, Ochako had believed things could only get better from then on. However, as she gazed out upon the starving, over-crowded street in front of her, she realised that she had been completely wrong. 

Everyone was still suffering, people were still dying, only in a far less gruesome way than back in Shiganshina, and later on, Wall Maria. The third wall had also fallen to the Titan attack, another giant beast arriving shortly after to drive itself through the stone as if it was a living battering ram. 

Ochako hadn't seen Wall Maria itself collapse, but she could only imagine the effect it had on people. Shiganshina being overrun was one thing, but the fall of the entire outer wall was even more dramatic.

The aftermath of that fateful evening might well have killed even more people. Sickness and poverty hung in the air in the days that followed, the city of Trost barely being able to cope with the massive number of refugees from the cities of Wall Maria. Despite so many of them dying in the initial attack, the survivors were still too much for the city to handle.

Ochako didn't really know what was going on, but whispered rumours on the streets told her all she needed to know. The city was struggling, its food stashes barely holding on as it supplied small rations out to the people on the streets. It was impossible to walk anywhere without seeing the homeless, and although the Garrison and Military Police hanging around were punctual when disposing of corpses, the stench of death still hung in the air. 

Luckily, Ochako and her parents managed to get a small place. They had no money, of course, but unused sheds and houses were rented out to the newcomers. Families were given priority, and for once Ochako was thankful for the vulnerable look her soft features supplied her. 

Tenya and his father were also given a living space, although it was far more basic and rundown than the shed Ochako shared with her parents. They didn't even have anything for bedding, while the temporary Uraraka household had been gifted with a few blankets from kindly residents nearby. 

There was also the fact that Ochako and Tenya were no longer neighbours. It wasn't too much of a change, as they would still make an effort to meet up daily. With nothing like school weighing on their daily routines, the teenagers found themselves growing increasingly bored as the days went by. 

Tenya gradually returned to his usual self, his hand gestures dynamic, and the strong sense of justice that always seemed to keep him rooted.

However... There was a small difference in him that Ochako began to notice. 

His smile was different. 

"Tenya-kun, are you sure you're alright?" The words had been replaying in Ochako's mind ever since they had arrived in Trost, and she wasn't sure why she had been holding back on voicing them for so long. 

"Yes, Ochako-san." 

He didn't look up from the ground. 

"Are you sure? You just... Seem off," Ochako flinched as she spoke, sensing how insensitive she was being. After all, Tenya had just lost half of his family, of course he was going to be 'off.' However, Ochako also doubted that Tenya would admit anything unless she kept probing, which was why she would risk being blunter than she would have preferred in a situation like this. 

"I can assure you that I am fine," He replied somewhat stiffly, finally looking up. Ochako noticed dimly that he still didn't have his glasses, which made it far easier to see his eyes. She didn't want to see his eyes, not when they looked at empty as they did in that moment. Although Tenya's lips were turned up in a small smile, that was all there was to his expression. 

Perhaps that was why Ochako had been so hesitant about asking - she had been afraid of the answer she would receive. Tenya had never lied to her before. In fact, it had been one of the things that she found slightly irritating about him, how he would seem completely unfiltered when giving his opinion on something. Obviously he wouldn't say anything mean, but he also wasn't afraid to speak his mind, no matter how blunt it could sound. Ochako could remember countless times when she had been merrily chatting to him in class, and he had simply turned to her and requested that she would be quiet so he could concentrate. Once she decided to continue chatting, to see how he would react, only for Tenya to raise his hand and ask if he could move desks for the lesson. 

Ochako never pushed Tenya like that again, and had remained slightly salty towards him for the rest of the day. However, he had knocked on her door later that evening, and approached the problem with the level-headedness that Ochako was sure only her best friend was capable of. 

She couldn't stay mad at Tenya, and began loving the truthful part of him, in all of its quirkiness. 

But now, it seemed she had lost that part of him, and she would be lying if she said it didn't hurt. 

Ochako knew Tenya had the right to keep his thoughts to himself, but in the cruel world that they lived in, Ochako craved the unfiltered voice of comfort Tenya would provide her with, the dutiful truthfulness that dominated both of their lives because of it. 

Despite Tenya being right next to her in that moment, Ochako had never felt so far away from her best friend. 

\--------------------

Life went on. 

Ochako watched sullenly as her father tried to fix up their little shed with his labouring hands, using any materials he could find. She watched as her mother queued up for hours only to receive a few rolls of bread to last them the next few days. She forced herself not to watch as the beggars on the streets increased in size, and forced herself to shake off their grimy hands when they grasped desperately at her as she walked past. There was nothing more that she wanted to do other than give them the food they deserved, but she was smart enough to realise that no kind of charity existed in that place. 

She watched with tears streaming down her face as her father was sent back out into the treacherous world of the Titans, on the futile mission to reclaim Wall Maria. 

"They just want to get rid of more people, to try and manage the overflowing population," Tenya spoke bitterly, his glassy eyes glaring at the wooden wall opposite. It felt odd for Ochako to hear her best friend's voice laced with so much venom, but she found herself feeling a similar fury in her heart. Surely a better solution could have been reached, like the refugees moving further into the wall system, where there was more room. 

But, then again, she was just a child. What did she know? 

When morning rolled around the next day, she travelled to the main gate with Tenya and her mother. Tenya's father had also been sent on the attack, as had all men over the age of sixteen who had entered Trost a few weeks ago. The crowd of women, children and Trost citizens was huge, yet not a single voice spoke until the gate re-opened, and a small group of men returned.

God, it was so small.

Ochako found out later on that of the two-thousand men who were sent on the mission, only one-hundred returned. 

She was so fortunate that her father was one of them. Although, could the empty vessel that marched back into Trost really be her father? It was like Tenya all over again, his warm-chocolate eyes empty and staring as he scouted the crowd for his wife and daughter. 

When he finally found them, instead of being overcome with joy, he began crying, and Ochako was forced to watch her father break down in front of her. 

In amongst the lively crowd, Ochako got separated from Tenya. Everyone seemed to be pushing at each other, whether it was desperation to reach a loved one, or just the emotional toil forcing people to stumble and lose sight of where they were.

That was the last time Ochako saw Tenya. 

She only found out what happened to him later on that week. 

Days had passed, and after not seeing a trace of her best friend around the city for days, Ochako decided to drop by at his old place that he shared with his father. It really wasn't much, and Ochako resisted the urge to wrinkle her nose at the state the small shed was in. A few of the boards which made up the roof were falling in, and she made a mental note to remind herself to ask her father to try and patch it up a little, as he had done with their shed. 

However, all thoughts were wiped from her mind as she watched an unfamiliar man walk into the shed. 

The shock of it had momentarily wiped any sanity that she had, as she sprinted forward and burst inside, her mind not willing to believe that Tenya was no longer there. The sight that greeted her inside was one of a lady with who Ochako presumed was her husband, the man she had seen enter just seconds ago. She was chased out under suspicion of thieving intentions, but had been inside long enough to know that all evidence of Tenya had been completely erased from the building. 

After the five-minute run home, she wasted no time in interrogating her father. Well, she started by crying in her panic, panting out that Tenya had disappeared as her parents desperately tried to calm her down. When she finally managed to get her full message out, the downcast look in her father's eyes was enough to tell her that something had gone horribly, horribly wrong, and it was something that he had kept from her until that moment. 

When he came clean, Ochako almost wished that he hadn't. 

Tenya's father had been killed in battle. That fact shouldn't have been shocking to Ochako, frankly, she was astonished that her father had returned in the first place, and the chances of both men making it out alive was absolutely miniature. It still sent her heart plummeting to her feet, whether it was the initial shock of losing another person who had been present throughout the entirety of her life so far, or the implications his death had on Tenya. 

Her father was quick to explain those next.

Because Tenya no longer had a biological guardian to take care of him, he needed to be sent somewhere that adults could keep an eye on. This translated to the farms. As Wall Maria - the main agricultural area - was no longer available for use, Wall Rose had been forced to take up the farming industry, using any spare land it had for growing crops. That also meant more people would have to work out on the farms, and the refugees were perfect nominees for that. 

And then, all of the teenagers would be given the option of joining the army, or remaining on the farms. 

That was the night that Ochako decided she would join the army when she turned fourteen. 

She knew there was only a small chance of Tenya joining the army, and she also knew that they might not end up in the same region as each other. She knew that it was a stupid motive to go through the hardships that would come with training. 

However, that wasn't the only reason. Visions of the rich people reclining within the safety of Wall Sina kept hovering around in Ochako's mind, before she snapped back to the cold, grim reality of her own world, and the thin blankets she shared with her parents every night. 

Only the top ten Cadets of every Training Corp were given the option to join the Military Police, everyone knew that. Ochako was aware that she was small, and currently lacked in muscle and strength, but the three years of training was a long time. Nobody could know what would go on in that time. Although it was tiny, a minute sliver of hope, there was a chance that Ochako could finish in the top ten of her Training Corp, and join the Military Police, where she would have enough money to provide her parents a secure home in the interior. 

It was better than sitting around uselessly all day, anyway. 

For the first time since her home was destroyed, Ochako slept soundly, a bright vision of the future painted in the back of her mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for all of the timeskips and lack of dialogue this chapter, it was pretty heavy XD I just wanted to get this stuff out of the way, next chapter will begin in the camp of the 104th with all of our class 1A buddies!


	2. {2} [Denki]

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With the sun beating down mercilessly on them, two best friends begin a journey in pursue of their dreams.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the comments and the kudos! :3  
> Sorry about the long wait for this chapter, I got sick recently, and went on holiday so stuff got pretty hectic.
> 
> Also, characters such as Tokoyami, Hagakure and Ashido get introduced this chapter, but as this is a different universe with no quirks or anything, I've had to adjust their appearances a little.

"Hanta, I'm hot."

"I'm really hoping you meant that in a temperature-sense." 

Denki decided to ignore his best friend's side comment, instead leaning his head on Hanta's shoulder. The sun's heat was unbearable, especially with the stuffy jackets they had been made to wear when they joined the camp. Denki wanted nothing more than to rid himself of the unneeded extra-layer, but knew that it would probably be best to leave it until later. Stories from the previous recruits who had returned to, or visited his village had told him that some of the instructors in the military were something to be feared. 

However, the stories also said that the friends they made through training were ones they would keep forever. Those that didn't join the Survey Corp, that is, and Denki had no mind to do that. 

He was smart enough to know what came with that choice. 

No, he and Hanta were going to enlist for the Military Police together. They were aware that it would require both of them landing in the top ten, out of a hundred or so recruits, but they had never really been realistic when viewing their dream. Besides, the thought of the luxurious life in the interior, surrounded by people of high-importance (and beautiful women) just sounded so great that neither was able to abandon the idea.

Unfortunately, Denki seemed to have been overestimating the experience he would have in the Cadet Training Corps. After all, all he was doing at the moment was standing in a dusty clearing surrounded by other equally disgruntled-looking teenagers, with a demon sun and demon jackets causing them all horrendous discomfort. Certainly not the beginning to the bright future he had hoped for. 

"Dude. Dude!" Hanta seemed to be trying to get his attention. Denki let out a small whine, shaking his head stubbornly as he kept it rooted on Hanta's shoulder, who continued to try and get a reaction out of his best friend, "Scary guy alert." 

"Wait, what?" This made Denki straighten up, trying desperately get his blond hair under control. It was undoubtedly sticking up after rubbing it against Hanta's shoulder for so long, and he wanted to look his finest in case any females happened to be looking his way. Also, the words 'scary guy' were enough to send him on alert. 

"Two-o'clock, a few rows ahead of us," Hanta whispered under his breath. 

"Please could you both be quiet? I'm trying to listen to what our instructor has to say and you're being awfully distracting." 

Both boys started at the new voice, and glanced to their right to see a boy with dark blue hair and metallic-rimmed glasses glaring determinedly at the space ahead of him, square jaw clenched in annoyance. Denki took note of the odd position he was standing in, his back unnaturally straight and hands clasped firmly behind his back. 

Hanta nudged him urgently, seeming to notice the same thing. It didn't take a lot to realise that this blue-haired guy was a good example, and Denki hurriedly fixed himself in the same position, despite how awkward he felt doing it. 

God, it felt so proper! Denki wasn't sure what he thought of it - so far army training seemed a lot like school. This was another reason to why he had decided to join, it would mean that he had to go through less actual education, the physical part of his learning making up for it.

Denki suddenly sensed eyes on him, and glanced in the direction that Hanta had originally described the 'scary guy' at. 

The haunting sight that met him was one that Denki was sure he would remember for the rest of his life. 

A pair of stony grey eyes stared back at him from a pale, tired face. The person's eye-bags were probably the next most noticeable thing, given their size and dark colouring. His face was unshaven, but Denki thought that it was less of a fashion statement and more of a lazy one, given the other aspects of the man's appearance. He was in a completely black outfit, his clothes looking a little too big for him, and certainly too thick for any normal human-being to be comfortable with under the sun. To add to that, he had long dark hair, and there was also a mountain of cloth around his neck that Denki managed to identify as a scarf after a few seconds of thought.

Hanta was right - their instructor definitely was a scary guy.

Denki made an uncomfortable sound in the back of his throat, feeling tempted to take a few steps back under the freezing stare of the man. There was something extremely disconcerting about those eyes, and Denki was almost certain that they hadn't blinked even once in the last minute or so. 

"I'm Aizawa Shouta, and I'll be your main instructor for the next few years." 

After what felt like an eternity, the grey orbs strayed from their original target of Denki and Hanta, and instead began wondering the rest of the crowd with their haunting gaze. 

"I'm not gonna be able to sleep tonight," Denki muttered, mostly to himself as he tried to rid the unnerving sight from his mind. When he had thought of his instructor before, he had pictured a strong, loud-voiced brute, instead of the more quiet, scrutinizing one that had just given him the death-glare. Honestly, Aizawa seemed more fitted to teaching a homeroom class instead of an army, but Denki couldn't really judge at this point.

"This also means that I'm responsible for all of you, so please don't die or anything... It means a lot of extra work for me." 

Denki and Hanta exchanged a quick glance, both of them with small smirks as they listened to Aizawa drone on. 

"Since you're here, you probably already know a lot about this system, but I'll explain it anyway because it's part of my job. There are three different Regiments you can join after you've finished the three required years of training, and feel free to leave and join the farms or something if you get bored. Honestly, I wouldn't really blame you... But anyway, three Regiments. The Garrison, who sit up on the walls all day and get drunk, but if that's what you want to do then fair enough. They get to handle cannons a lot which I know you kids like. Then there's the Survey Corp, who travel outside of the walls." 

Denki felt the atmosphere chill slightly at the mention of the Survey Corp. That particular Regiment had always been a dodgy subject of conversation, with people having so many different opinions on them. Denki himself thought they were pretty dumb, wanting to risk their lives to fight against such a hopeless-seeming problem, but he wasn't one to hate anyone who wanted to join them. 

There had been a young boy in the village who had joined the Survey Corp, and Denki remembered him as being a perfectly nice person. 

He died on his first expedition, but that was something the village chose to ignore. 

"And, finally, the Military Police, where you live in Wall Sina and oversee the laws and stuff. We'll have separate lessons on all of that later, so if you're completely clueless then you won't miss out on too much. A place in the Military Police is only available for the top ten rankers, so it'd probably be a good idea to have some kind of backup plan."

Despite Denki already knowing all he needed on the Military Police, he still felt himself swell with eagerness at the prospect of it. The confirmation of having a few non-physical lessons was quite disheartening, but Denki reminded himself that this was a whole lot better than regular school. 

The rest of his classmates were probably in a lesson right about now. 

Peasants.

"Okay, moving on... I've randomly put you into cabins for sleeping, so check outside the dining hall for it. They are all labelled, so if you get lost, then... You're dumb, and don't trouble me with it please." 

Denki glanced at the small wooden buildings surrounding the clearing, and the one that seemed slightly larger than the rest. That was probably the mess hall. He grinned openly, proud of his deduction skills. 

"Now, we don't really have time to begin any actual training yet, and the routine is that I go around and let a few of you introduce yourselves... And don't be shy, you'll be spending three years with the other people here, so it's best to make a good impression," Aizawa advised, walking around slowly as his hard gaze hovered on each person he passed. Denki could already feel himself beginning to sweat, and this time not because of the heat. The prospect of being picked on was quite terrifying. He wasn't a shy person, in fact, Denki was eager to get to know his fellow comrades, and the thought of speaking in front of so many people didn't scare him. No... Aizawa scared him. Denki never wanted to be caught in that terryfing glare again.

"Alright, you. What's your name and where are you from?" While Denki had been having a minor panic attack thinking about Aizawa's face, the instructor had come to a halt, choosing his first victim. 

Denki craned his neck to see the person, as Aizawa was still quite far in front and there were people of many different shapes and sizes standing in the way. However, after quite a lot of manoeuvring (much to the annoyance of the blue-haired boy next to him,) Denki managed to catch a glimpse at the person. They were female, which made him interested from the start, and had a curly mop of... Was that pink hair? 

"I'm Ashido Mina, and I've come from Colvar village in Wall Maria!" The girl's voice came out chirpy, and Denki could see her bouncing on the balls of her feet as she answered the question. However, at her words, precisely the location, the previous silence that ruled over the clearing was broken by a series of murmurings. Hanta and Denki were no different. 

"Man... Did you hear that? Wall Maria, that's gotta suck," Hanta leant over and whispered, his dark eyes fixed on Ashido as well. 

"I wonder if she saw any Titans..." Denki muttered quietly, running a hand through his hair. "We should ask her about it. I bet she's got a ton of cool stories." 

Hanta nodded in agreement. "She must've been through a lot, though. She might seem happy, but who knows what she saw." 

"I want to be her friend." 

Hanta leaned back slightly at that, fixing his best friend with a calculating look. He whipped his head back to Ashido for a second, before glancing back at Denki, repeating the action over-dramatically, as if trying to make a point. Denki was quite surprised that he hadn't sprained his neck yet. 

"Are you sure that's not just because of her curves?" 

"Dude!" Denki proclaimed defensively, flinching at how loudly his voice had come out. He could already feel the glare of the blue-haired boy on his back, and reminded himself to find out his name some time. Given how much scolding he had received from him already, they could probably pass as friends. "She seems like an interesting person, pretty chill. Her curves are nice, though." 

Hanta gave an exaggerated eye roll at that, taking a step back into line as he clasped his hands behind his back again. Sensing that the conversation was over - and his best friend's disappointment in him - Denki turned back to Aizawa, who was still interrogating Ashido. 

"Wall Maria... What are you here for, then, Ashido?" 

"I mean... I want to join the Military Police," She said without pause, continuing to bounce on the balls of her feet. Denki narrowed his eyes in a small glare, as despite how nice this girl's curves were, competition was competition and he wouldn't welcome a rival. 

"I see," Aizawa said shortly. "Is that an escape to the interior?" 

It was common knowledge that not all of the Military Police recruits joined for the sole purpose of keeping the law and protecting the lives of the royal family. Instead, they tended to be focused on either the luxury, honour, or safety that accompanied a life within the interior. Especially if Ashido came from one of the outer villages, one that suffered from the recent Titan attack, she had a very good excuse to hide in Wall Sina. After all, she had seen the horrors of the Titans herself. Denki was also guilty of wanting to join the Military Police for a selfish reason, that of the reputation it would give him. The thought of returning to his village with Hanta, both of them dressed in the signature Military Police uniform, was a dream that they had carried since childhood.

"No, it's not an escape," Ashido replied, her voice strong and believable. "I want to help people follow the law, and punish those who don't." 

"Hm." Aizawa continued to show no reaction, and instead to said, "I read up on some of the information passed onto me with your name and register. Quite the hero back in your village, on that fateful day. Saved a person trapped in the rubble, helped a few people in their panic and onto the escape boats."

More murmurings sprang out as Aizawa walked away from Ashido, their discussions filled with wonder, instead of sympathy and shock like before. Even Hanta seemed impressed by the story.

"Okay, if that's true, I'll admit she is pretty hot." 

Denki simply pursed his lips and nodded in a silent agreement. He was quite enjoying this, as long as Aizawa didn't eventually pick on him. Any information on girls was, of course, welcome, especially if they were all like Ashido. 

Unfortunately, Denki's luck seemed to be out as the next person Aizawa stopped on, a little further down the same row, was a male. He was slightly easier to see, given the different angle, and Denki was able to make out another mess of hair, this time... Green? 

"What's with the odd hair colours here?" Denki muttered, rubbing his eyes just in case they were playing tricks on him. Perhaps the hot sun was causing hallucinations. 

"What's your name and where are you from?" Aizawa spoke the same words as he had to Ashido, in the same bored voice. Denki wondered how many times he had been forced to do this over this years. It must get quite boring listening to kids recite their life's goals and stories to him. Suddenly Denki didn't find his instructor quite so frightening.

"My name is Midoriya Izuku, i-it's nice to meet you!" The boy's voice was high-pitched, and cracked under his nervousness. Denki felt his lips pull into a sympathetic smile at that, well-aware of how irritating voice-breaks could be, especially in such a public place. 

There was a slight pause, as everyone seemed to wait for Midoriya to continue.

"O-Oh yeah! And I've come from the Underground City." 

This announcement also earned a reaction from the other recruits. They were split into halves on this matter, the ones who were aware of the Underground City and what it was, and the others who had no idea, and were only taken by the distinctiveness of the name. Denki was part of the latter. 

"I'm really hoping that not everyone here has a super exotic backstory," Hanta said quietly, voicing one of Denki's fears. From Ashido, who had survived a Titan attack, to Midoriya who came from the mysterious 'Underground City,' they made Hanta and Denki's little farming village seem incredibly mundane. 

"Dude, I know right! It's cool and all, but if the entire squad is made up of people from 'Underground Cities' or whatever, that's pretty scary." 

Hanta hummed in agreement. "I wonder what the Underground City even is. It sounds pretty hardcore, but... I mean, no offence to this Midoriya guy or anything, but he doesn't exactly seem... Tough." 

They both turned their attention back to Midoriya, who was visibly shaking under the force of Aizawa's glare. The man certainly wouldn't let up for anyone, no matter how meek they appeared to be. Denki knew that was probably the right feature in an instructor, but it didn't make him any less discomforting. 

"Excuse me, but would you please be quiet? Not only are you disrespecting another fellow recruit, and future comrade, you are also distracting the others around you," The same voice that had been lecturing them on-and-off for the past fifteen minutes was back, its robotic tone becoming more forceful. 

Denki glanced to his right to be met with the scrutinizing gaze of the boy with glasses, the sun reflecting off the lenses to make him look far more intense than Denki thought should be possible. 

"Look, we're sorry dude," Denki decided to confront him, sensing that it would be good to try and make as many friends as he could in this place. He wouldn't be comfortable with someone out in the camp hating his guts, after all. "Hang on, uh... What's your name? It's kinda annoying to call you 'blue-haired guy' in my head." 

He let out a nervous laugh hoping that his pitiful attempt at a joke would clear the atmosphere a little between them. The boy simply turned his head away in dismissal, momentarily breaking his clasped hand position to push his glasses up on the bridge of his nose. 

With that hand, he then made a dramatic chopping motion, one that caused Denki to take a step back. 

"I hope that you realise your mistake now, and I will accept your apology as long as you do not continue to chat. Also, in answer to your earlier question, my name is Iida Tenya." 

Recovering from his momentary shock, and choosing to ignore Hanta's barely contained laughter from behind him, Denki shot his new friend a wide grin. Yes, Iida was his new friend, even if he wasn't aware of it yet.

"Well, Midoriya…" Aizawa straightened up from the slouch he had previously been in from talking to Midoriya, given the boy's smaller height. "Give my regards to All Might." 

"O-Oh, I'm not with All Might anymore, h-he and I parted a long time ago! I don't even... I don't even know what he's doing anymore, r-really, I swear, I haven't seen him in... In ages, actually, um, I don't even now what you're talking about-"

Denki didn't have long to question the odd final words Aizawa had exchanged with Midoriya, or the questionable reaction from the teen, as a sudden feral growling from a few rows behind distracted him. Trying to get rid of the chills that now filled his body at the noise, despite the continuous heat, Denki spared a quick glance over his shoulder to try and locate the source of the noise. 

It didn't take long to find the person in question, and the sheer scariness of their expression was enough to send Denki whirling back around to face the front, a small squeak of fright leaving the back of his throat. 

Although he had only laid eyes on him for a moment, Denki could still picture his face. The spiky, ash-blond hair and blood-red eyes to contrast, mouth curled into what could have been a permanent frown. Well, it was less of a frown and more of a twisted expression of murderous intent, as if he was wishing for everyone (especially Midoriya) to die in a violent explosion of some sort.

Denki decided he would try and stay away from that particular person. 

Then again... He did seem interesting. Maybe Denki would judge his final decision on whether to introduce himself depending on how fearless he was feeling later. 

"Right, next..." Aizawa slipped into the next row back, causing Denki to shuffle uncomfortably. He was gradually edging closer. 

Luckily, Aizawa ventured no further, and instead picked on another male in the row just in front. Denki was getting slightly fed up of only being able to see the backs of these peoples' heads, and found himself not being too shocked by the odd hair of this person. 

Although he was short in size, much like Midoriya had been, the feathery black hair that stood on the person's head was enough to give him a little more height. He had a pale complexion, from what Denki could see, and probably didn't spend much time out in the sun. The only reason that Denki knew this was because he had spent a solid five hours everyday for the past week out in his back garden trying to get a tan in preparation for heading off to camp. 

"What's your name and where are you from?" 

"My name is Tokoyami Fumikage, and I am from Trost District, sir." Denki was immediately shocked at the new person's voice, as it seemed to be the polar opposite of Midoriya's in its deepness. Heck, it seemed even lower than Aizawa's, and had the same lack of energy in it. 

"Thank God, finally someone from a normal background," Hanta muttered under his breath, shooting Iida an apologetic glance when a glare was sent his way. 

"And what Regiment do you want to join, then?" Aizawa probed, sensing that Tokoyami wouldn't advance his statement in any way. Apart from being one of the areas that was most affected by the swarms of refugees from Wall Maria, Trost District didn't really have anything else unique about it.

"I... I do not have a specific regiment that I wish to join," Tokoyami replied, his tone wavering slightly. It was odd to hear such a deep voice sound so uncertain. 

"Maybe he isn't entirely normal..." Denki added, already beginning to hear the familiar murmurings sound out. 

Iida seemed to have given up on trying to keep people quiet. 

"Huh. That's one I haven't heard of before," Aizawa said, bowing his shaggy head in admittance. "How come you've joined then, kid?" 

Denki was struggling to figure that out. Why would anyone join the army, if not for a personal gain? It was common knowledge that training was a hard thing to undergo, being pushed to your physical limits everyday in trying conditions and climate. Either Tokoyami was extremely insane, or he was unfortunate enough to know nothing about the Cadet Corps. 

Denki's head hurt. Too much thinking for one day.

"I don't know why I joined, sir. I'm hoping to find that out."

Denki had no idea what to think of this guy. It was a relief to him when Aizawa decided to move on, as trying to figure out the meaning behind anything Tokoyami was saying was difficult enough to make his brain ache. 

Aizawa then moved onto Denki's row, and his momentary relief was forgotten immediately. 

"Dude, he's definitely coming closer," Hanta leant over and whispered in Denki's ear, making the other’s apprehension even more severe. 

"I wouldn't be surprised if he picked on one of you two," Iida said earnestly from the side, fixing the pair with his stern gaze. Denki realised that the boy next to him was actually a lot more like the kind of instructor he had envisioned beforehand, one with the strong build and sense of justice that Iida had, picking up on everybody's little issues in behaviour. 

Actually, come to think of it... 

"Hey! You're busy lecturing us about talking through such an 'important session' or whatever, but here you are whispering like the rest of us!" Denki hissed, managing to insert a decent amount of smugness and truimph into his announcement, despite the low volume. 

For a moment, Iida seemed lost for words, his mouth opening and closing, expression blank as he tried to comprehend what he was being told. Hanta even let out a small 'ooh' from Denki's other side. The blond straightened, feeling pride in every ounce of his being. He had just outsmarted Iida at his own game, Iida who, despite only being a friend of Denki's for a few minutes, had already shown off his high intelligence. Maybe Denki wasn't as stupid as his teachers had thought-

"Actually, it doesn't matter too much, as long as Aizawa is not speaking, or another trainee. Your actions are only unjustified if you are talking over another, and while you may find it enlightening to watch our instructor walk for a few metres, it would not be educationally useful," Iida gave a long reply, and Denki was sure that he saw something akin to mischief flash in those blue eyes of his. 

However, Denki's poor brain was too busy trying to sort through the mass of new vocabulary he had just learned to feel too offended by the other's competitiveness. 

"Speaking of which," Iida continued, causing Denki to swallow a whine of discomfort, "It seems he has chosen another trainee. Now we will be silent, and listen to what they have to say."

Denki forced himself to direct his concentration back to his instructor, who was now standing in front of another girl. Feeling his attention gained, Denki leaned over slightly to get a better look at her, as now they were on the same row it was easier for him to actually catch a glimpse of the person's face.

They were also quite short, and had dark green hair that reminded him of Midoriya's. It was in quite a different style, though, the long threads being let down until just below the girl's waist, where they were tied into an odd bow-like shape. Denki narrowed his eyes, trying to see how she was keeping it together. Surely she must have a hair tie, or something along those lines...

"What's your name?" 

"Asui Tsuyu, but you can call me Tsu," The girl's voice was croaky, but not in an unpleasant way. It had a tone of friendliness, with no hint of nervousness or moodiness. She just sounded like a generally nice person, and Denki found himself smiling slightly. He would also become her friend.

And that decision was certainly not affected by the surprisingly large breasts she had.

"And where do you come from... Tsu?" Aizawa said, looking somewhat uncomfortable as he spoke her given name. It was the first expression other than boredom that Denki had seen on the man's face all afternoon, and he found himself silently congratulating Tsu for getting through to their heartless instructor. 

Unless Aizawa was secretly a pervert. Denki would suspect everyone until proven otherwise. 

"Dauper, a hunting village in Wall Rose," Tsu answered. Denki leaned back, reciting his list of new friends over in his head. At least, the friends that he had so far, and then the ones that he was going to make. 

There was Hanta, of course, who was Denki's best friend. And then there was Iida, who, despite making Denki feel betrayed by his intelligence, was a good friend. He was yet to have met any other members of the Cadet Corps, but he had to admit that the little interviews Aizawa was carrying out had their advantages. Ashido seemed like she could be a good friend, her bubbly voice still clear in Denki's mind. Midoriya seemed very nervous, and quite mysterious, but Denki knew that he might just have been shy to speak out about himself in front of so many people. He was, at the moment, a 'to be confirmed’ friend. Tokoyami seemed far too edgy and philosophical for Denki, just listening to a few sentences from that deep voice was enough to give him a headache. Tsu would also become his friend. 

And there was that unforgettable ball of rage that Denki had looked at for a few seconds, with the blond hair and red eyes. 

He was also ‘to be confirmed.’

While Denki had been filling out his friends list, Aizawa had completed his chat with Tsu, and was moving further down the line...

...Directly towards Denki.

The terror he felt in that moment was unlike anything he had ever experienced in his life. Screw the school bullies, screw surprise history tests, screw the Titans, even.

Nothing could compare to the veil of dread and horror Aizawa left in his wake. 

Denki imagined that, if he ever made it back to his village, he would not tell stories of the heroic moments he had throughout his training. Even if he managed to get a place in the Military Police, he would not share the stories of the theives he stopped, of the murderers he defeated. No... He would tell stories of his Training Camp instructor. 

'Go for Iida,' Denki thought desperately to himself, 'Iida is smart, Iida will know what to say! He won't make a fool of himself like I would!'

Aizawa walked slowly past the blue-eyed teen, sparing nothing but a glance in his direction. Denki felt his panic mount.

'Pick Hanta, then! Hanta has people skills, Hanta would be a good choice! Please... Just don't pick me!' 

Aizawa stopped, cold eyes boring into Denki's fearful ones. 

"You." 

"God dangit!" It took Denki a good five seconds or so to realise that he had actually cursed out loud, with the assistance of some frantic arm-gesturing from Iida and face-palming from Hanta.

He felt his face burn up, the boiling sun not providing any comfort, as murmurings burst out across the clearing again. These ones weren't hesitant, confused or awed as the last ones had been, instead filled with muffled laughter as people gossiped about the tactlessness of the new recruit. Denki even saw a few of the trainees in rows ahead of him turn around, one of these onlookers proving out to be Ashido. She had surprisingly rosy cheeks, and bright amber eyes that glinted in the daylight. 

She, and her attractive face, were also not helping Denki's situation at all.

He knew that he had to make up for his mistake, somehow. Aizawa's expression, although not having changed from its usual emotionless stare, still terrified Denki half to death, and he also wanted to show people like Ashido that he wasn't a complete idiot. 

At least... He could try and make them believe that he wasn't as stupid as he actually was.

Thinking quickly on his feet, Denki did the one thing that he guessed would provide him a little relief in his dilemma. Simply, he saluted, placing a clenched fist over the right side of his chest. It was a typical thing for a soldier to do, and would hopefully go down well with Aizawa. 

"Yeah, sorry about that!" Denki said quickly, struggling to regain his composure. "But anyway, yo, I'm Kaminari Denki and I'm from Aylesbury village in Wall Rose! Also, this is my friend, Hanta. Or, uh, Sero. Sero Hanta."

"Hey," Hanta chirped, seeming slightly confused as to why he had been brought in. Honestly, Denki was losing track of what he was talking about.

Aizawa put his hand up, the simple action causing Denki's mouth to snap shut, which was probably a good thing, given that he was about to go on another ramble to try and regain the little dignity he had left. He didn't attempt to try and look in Ashido's direction again, and instead focused in on his instructor as he began to speak. In his opinion, he had recovered quite well. 

"What Regiment do you want to join, kid?" Aizawa asked evenly, his voice giving away nothing, much to Denki's disappointment. However, he was quite a simple-minded person, and didn't want to read into the question too much.

"The Military Police, sir," Denki replied, sticking the extra 'sir' in at the end. That was a sign of respect - it should help him out a little, right? 

"Right... Well, sorry, Kaminari Denki, but at this rate you're not going to make it to the top ten, and even if you did, I doubt the Military Police would keep you long. Not only are you lacking in discipline, you also made the rookie mistake of getting your salute the wrong way round." 

Denki paused, feeling his jaw go slack. He glanced down at his chest and clenched fist for a moment, before looking back at Aizawa. Hanta made a small sniggering sound, and Iida visibly shook his head in disapproval. 

"Luckily for you, my job is to make you... Better, I guess. Just try to remember that your heart's on your left side, which is why we salute there inside of right."

As if Aizawa had been waiting for that moment, a bell rang out across the clearing. Denki had no idea what it signified, honestly, he was too busy trying to recover from the horror of his introduction to care. 

"Okay, everyone, that was the bell," Aizawa called out, turning away from Denki with a dismissive look on his face. "Dinner will be fairly soon, but first you should settle into your rooms, get to know the people you're bunking with or whatever you want to do... As I said earlier, the list of cabin plans is on the wall outside the dining hall." 

He paused, glancing over his shoulder at Denki for a moment. The blond recoiled immediately, terrified of being shamed for again. He'd already screwed his image up enough, and the damage with Ashido had surely been done. 

"And Kaminari, for your mistake, you're on dish-duty first. You just have to stay back once everyone has finished their meals, and then clear up the plates. Shouldn't be too hard." And with that, Aizawa raised the volume of his drawling voice for one final announcement, "I'll be heading around to check that you guys are all good, and get you sent over to dinner when it's ready."

He began walking away, feet dragging along the dusty ground as he made his way toward one of the cabins. The recruits watched him go, all eyes on their instructor as they waited for him to be out of ear-shot, or eye-shot. Then, all of the quiet murmurings that had built up over the past half hour sprang into colourful conversation, friends breaking line to gossip to each other, making comments on their experience so far.

Denki and Hanta were acting slightly differently to the rest. 

As one of them had just been through an extremely traumatic affair, the other one was required to give comfort, or, in Hanta's case, laugh at how comical his best friend's situation looked to him.

In other words, the blond had regained his uncomfortable position of leaning on Hanta's shoulder, but instead of complaining, he was outright sobbing. 

"Hantaaaaa-" He drew out the other's name, word dissolving into more incoherent blubbering. 

"Idiot." A feminine voice provoked Denki to glance up for a moment, catching the eye of a purple-haired girl with noticeably long earlobes stalk past them, her glance playfully disdainful as she surveyed Denki's pitiful form. Damn, and she was hot, too. She walked away without another word.

Denki continued to cry.

"If it is any consolation..." Iida's voice piped up meekly from somewhere behind, reminding Denki of his existence. "I thought that the saluting gesture was a very good option to go for, and I am certain that it would have gained you a few points in Aizawa's books if you hadn't... Well... Done it wrong..."

Denki continued to cry.

"Don't worry about him, Iida," Hanta said, giving Denki a comforting pat on the back. "He just has Denki-Depression, wears off in a few hours, at the most. I think the last time it was this severe was when he asked out a girl back at school, and she called him a-" 

"Hanta, that's not helping!" Denki whined, shoving his best friend away in betrayal. 

"I see..." Iida said, sounding thoughtful. Denki did not want to know what he was thinking about. It would probably give him even more of a headache. "Well then, I think I'll head over to the dining hall to see the cabin plans, as Aizawa instructed. It was nice to meet both of you."

With a polite nod, Iida marched in the direction that the other trainees were beginning to hover around. Denki wondered how pleasant their meeting had really been - he guessed that someone of his stupidity was not a good choice of company for someone like Iida. He continued to cry.

"We should probably go over too, buddy... And, if it makes you feel any better, I'll help you out with the washing after dinner." Hanta said, giving his usual toothy smile. Denki felt a flash of comfort at that, and even managed to give a wobbly grin in return, despite feeling his heart continue to throb.

They made their way over to the notice-board, hanging back as others fought to get a view first. It was quite chaotic, but the pair felt no need of urgency. Their simple bags were waiting in the storage cabin that they had been assigned to, and because of the modest income of their village, neither had too much to worry about unpacking for. Simple clothes and the odd family memoir was all they had carried with them to the camp.

Denki felt his anxiety from earlier return as people kept shooting him glances. He knew that, despite his comments on the quirky appearances of other cadets, he stood out quite a lot himself. Whether it was his spiky blonde hair, the dark streak that somehow managed to resemble lightning, or his extremely handsome face, people never tended to forget who he was. For once, this was a bad thing, as Denki's ears kept picking up on whispered phrases such as 'the one who screwed up his salute' and even 'dunce-face,' which he found to be extremely offensive. Denki had decided not to stand up for himself in that case, though, given that it was the explosive blond from earlier who had thrown that particular insult.

After the crowd had died down a bit, Denki managed to catch a glimpse of the sheet, squinting to read the small print. Luckily Aizawa had been slightly merciful in making two columns labelled for the female dorms and the male ones, but other than that simple divider, he had left the rest of the name-searching to the cadets. Denki and Hanta scouted the seemingly-countless lists for their names, both waiting with baited breath - for of course they wanted to end up together. Denki had always realised that they could be separated, but after his earlier humiliation, spending a single night without his best friend was a horrifying thought.

"I'm Cabin Two," Hanta spoke after a moment, leaning back slightly as he found his name. Denki's eyes were immediately drawn to that particular group of names, unconsciously crossing his fingers as he read them.

'Bakugou Katsuki'

'Kirishima Eijirou'

'Kaminari Den-'

"Yes! Denki, we're together!" Hanta exclaimed just as Denki spotted his name on the list, a thrill running through him as he recognised their good fortune. 

He beamed for the first time since his interrogation, and exchanged a thrilled fist-bump with Hanta as they both turned back to the list to examine the other names.

'Ojiro Mashirao'

'Aoyama Yuuga'

'Satou Rikidou'

Denki read through the list, as if trying to introduce himself to them by the words alone. 

"Iida's not with us," Hanta commented absently, appearing to have also finished his reading. Denki was slightly disappointed at that, he would be more than happy to be with any of his friends, but he also realised that the chance of all three of them being in the same room was a very small one, given the large amount of other recruits. Besides...

"No offence to Iida, but I feel like the guy would be a really stressy person to share a cabin with," Denki voiced his thoughts, and received an amused nod from Hanta.

"True, true. He would probably lecture us on talking after eight o'clock or something." 

Denki just had to hope that there were no super early sleepers in their cabin, because it would be extremely unlucky for them if that were the case. He and Hanta had only had a few sleepovers in the past - the sole reason for that being that they barely got any sleep when they were together. The most memorable excuse Denki can think of was when he and Hanta had snuck into one of the Garrison member's huts, stolen a bottle of alcohol and woken up with the infamous headache of a hangover. They had been eight..

On second thought, perhaps it would have been a good thing if Iida had been designated to the same cabin as them. 

"Tokoyami and Midoriya aren't, either," Hanta added, making Denki start. He had completely forgotten the names of the other boys, and could only vaguely remember a mess of dark green hair, and a deep voice that was coated in edginess. 

"That's fine, it means we can meet even more people and make even more friends!" Denki interrupted before Hanta could say anything else, slinging an arm around his best friend's shoulders. His mood had lifted abruptly when he found out that he and Hanta were in the same cabin, and now he felt as though nothing could drag him down. 

All he had to do was meet his new cabin-mates, win over Aizawa with his natural charm, and place in the top ten. Then he would be directly on course for the Military Police.

\--------------------

"Move your fucking bags before I tear them to shreds!" 

Denki was once again possessed by the need to cry. After collecting their bags from the storage cabin, he and Hanta had made their way to the cabin labelled 'two.' As they had refrained from checking the list for quite a long time to give Denki a little while to recompose himself, they had been the last to arrive at the cabin. However, even standing outside, they could hear colourful curse words resonating from inside, the voice so loud that it felt as though the small wooden building was about to collapse into itself because of it. 

And, of course, the person speaking just had to be the blond from earlier, the one who had half-terrified Denki to death. 

Denki recognised him as soon as they stepped inside, and suddenly felt the need to run. Hanta grabbed him by the collar instead, keeping him firmly rooted to the spot as he smiled at the others boys inside of the cabin.

"Hey! I'm Sero Hanta and this is Kaminari Denki, we're from Aylesbury village!" He introduced both of them, which Denki was slightly thankful for. 

"Yeah, no shit, we found that out earlier," The blond hissed, turning his red-eyed glare back to his bag, which was sitting on one of the bunks. Denki took a moment to glance around the room, taking in his living space for the next few years. 

It was simple, with four sets of bunk beds situated in each corner. The blond had already claimed the one in the furthest left corner, and seemed to be guarding it or himself. This confused Denki for a moment, but he quickly noticed that there was an odd number of them, so someone was bound to be on their own. The other appeared to have nominated himself. 

"Woah, Bakugou, did you pay attention to what Kaminari said? And I thought you called everyone else 'extras' as well," A boy with bright red hair commented, swinging his rucksack up onto his shoulders. He was also hanging around the bed in the far right corner, having been the one that 'Bakugou' had been shouting at earlier. 

He stepped up to face Denki and Hanta, a sharp-toothed grin outlining his face in a friendly nature. "I'm Kirishima Eijirou!" He held out a hand for shaking, which Denki took with an equally sunny grin. He couldn't help but notice how rough Kirishima's hands were, and wondered absently if he'd been working on a farm before coming to the training camp. 

"Excuse moi, please don't steal all of their attention~" A new voice called, a strong accent causing it to be hard to decipher for Denki. Had he just said 'moi?' 

A sudden stench of strong-smelling soap hit Denki's nose, and he wrinkled it on impulse as a living being of fairy dust approached in a whirlwind of sparkles. The new person had shining blond hair that had been styled in precise curls, and confident violet eyes that were marginally concealed by his dainty fringe. Denki could only dread how long this guy would hog the showers for in the morning. 

"Aoyama Yuuga," He said, keeping his accent and melodramatic tone. His mouth curved into a triangular smile that disturbed Denki greatly, and all he could do was give a nervous laugh. Kirishima had made him feel much more secure.

"Don't mind Yuuga, he can seem pretty overwhelming at first," Another blond spoke (that was four out of seven now,) although his hair was far more tamed than the others'. "I'm Ojiro Mashirao." He had dark, slanted eyes that crinkled slightly when he smiled, which he did as he introduced himself. Ojiro now had Denki's stamp of approval.

It was funny how the members of his cabin either seemed to be super nice, or super weird, or super scary. A lively bunch. 

"We thought you guys might want to go together..." Kirishima piped up from his position on what Denki guessed was his bunk. He had relocated himself a little further away from Bakugou, and instead was sharing with the large, muscular boy who had yet to introduce himself. 

"That, and we were all kinda too scared to bunk with Bakugou…" Ojiro said, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly as he retreated to his bunk with Aoyama. Denki wondered who he himself would have preferred to go with - the scary blond or the diva blond. He was just grateful that Hanta was easy to get along with. 

"Oi! Don't talk about me like I'm not here!" Bakugou yelled, his loud voice causing Denki's heartbeat to speed up for a second. Deciding not to face Bakugou until he felt slightly more confident, he placed his bag on the bottom bunk, Hanta nimbly swinging himself up on the ladder to place his own one on the top bunk. This was their usual routine. 

"Well, would you rather we included you in the conversation directly?" Kirishima challenged, giving a fearless grin as Bakugou snarled at him. 

"Fuck off." 

"I found them!" A unfamiliar voice cried in triumph, and all eyes (including Bakugou's) turned to the well-built boy in the corner. He straightened up, having previously been rooting around in his bag, a large cloth in his hand. A sudden strong, sweet smell filled the cabin, and Denki had to swallow to keep himself from visibly drooling. 

Talk about embarrassing. 

Seeming to realise that his outburst had been unexpected, the boy rubbed his neck in a similar fashion to how Ojiro had earlier, a small blush staining his cheeks as he glanced to the side to avoid meeting their eyes. 

"Um... You see, back in my village my parents owned a bakery, and they said I could bring some pastries to share with whoever I bunked with at camp on the first night..." He trailed off, looking back up, plump lips curling into a shy smile. "I'm Satou Rikidou, by the way."

"Well, Satou Rikidou, you are my new best friend," Hanta said, vaulting himself from the top bunk and landing on the wood-boarded floor with a loud crash. This provoked some more cursing from Bakugou, and an extremely manly squeal from Aoyama. 

"Aw, come on dude, I thought I was your best friend!" Denki complained, playfully shoving past Hanta to get at the food first. They began wrestling as Satou folded the cloth back, increasing the heavenly smell in the cabin. 

Kirishima leant over the edge of his mattress, an outstretched hand motioning hopefully for the first one. 

"I guess since you're my bunk mate..." Satou said slowly, handing over the first pastry to the redhead. Because of his large height, he barely had to raise his arm to reach. Hanta and Denki both let out an overexaggerated groan at this, feeling rejected to not have been chosen first. Their wrestling subsided. 

Ojiro shuffled past them, a slightly nervous grin on his face as he also claimed one of the pastries. "You guys are just like overgrown children, huh...?" 

Neither Denki or Hanta had anything to say to defend themselves against that, given that they had literally just been play-fighting while waiting to be given a pastry. They both turned back to Satou, trying a different tactic of using begging expressions. 

This didn't seem to work, as Satou's attention fixed on someone behind them. "Hey, Aoyama, catch!" He threw a pastry right over their heads. 

"Merci~!" 

Satou then, very purposefully, glanced in Bakugou's direction. The blond was crouched on the top bunk, sitting in the corner with a feral expression. He reminded Denki of a wild bear, only with a lot more rage packed into a smaller being. Sensing Bakugou's hostility, Satou seemed to hesitate, causing Denki's hopes of finally getting a pastry to sky-rocket. 

"Hey, Kirishima, can you give Bakugou this pastry? I'm honestly kinda scared of him." The brunet passed another one up, trusting enough of Kirishima that he would not eat it for himself. Denki's jaw dropped at Satou's cruelty, and Hanta didn't seem to be faring much better. 

"What the fuck did I tell you shits about talking like that - I'm right here! And I don't want a stupid muffin or whatever it is!" 

In response to that, Kirishima threw the pastry to the other side of the room, where it bounced off the wall and landed perfectly in Bakugou's lap. Denki forgot his depression for a moment to be impressed by Kirishima's accuracy. 

"He's manly enough not to chuck away a perfectly good pastry," Kirishima said, glancing back down at Satou, who was looking quite terrified for what kind of reaction his bunkmate's actions might get out of Bakugou. "These are really, really good by the way!" 

Satou finally gave Denki and Hanta their pastries, and both nearly broke down into tears as they received their long-awaited rewards. Now that everyone was content (excluding Bakugou, who never really seemed to be content,) they made their ways back to their respective bunks. No one could really be bothered to begin unpacking yet, and it wasn't as though there were many drawers or cabinets to put their things into.

Denki lay back on his mattress, feeling the pillow deflate under the weight of his head. The pastry was - as Kirishima had described it - delicious, and Denki found himself smiling with each bite. 

The cabin lapsed into a comfortable silence, everyone enjoying the luxury of Satou's cooking. Denki absentmindedly began poking at Hanta's bed, the thin railing doing little to protect his best friend's comfort. 

"Denki, I swear to God, if you poke me in the middle of the night, I'll get Bakugou to beat you up," Hanta called down, and Denki could hear him shuffling about above in disgruntlement. He immediately retracted his hand at that, the horror of having an angry Bakugou let loose on him being a nightmarish thought. 

"I actually will do that. It's not like I want to help you out or anything, but Dunce-Face annoys me." 

Denki said up abruptly, unfortunately banging his head against the metal above. He was too panicked to care. 

"Wait, what?!? Why do you hate me so much? Bakugou, we barely know each other!" He rubbed his temple in annoyance as Hanta cackled from the top bunk. 

"You're dumb." 

"I can't argue with that, but that's no reason to hate someone!" Denki whined, collapsing back onto his bed and sullenly finishing off his pastry. He did not smile at the flavours this time. 

"Hey, don't worry about Bakugou, man," Kirishima called from his own bunk. Denki couldn't see him from his position, but the boyish friendliness in his voice was easily recognisable. Besides, Kirishima was probably the only person who would defend Bakugou. "He seems rough around the edges at first, but he's actually a pretty cool guy. Very manly." 

"What the fuck did you just say about me-?" 

"So, Kirishima, are you and Bakugou friends?" Ojiro asked, sitting up slightly in curiosity. 

His question raised a lot of reaction from Bakugou, who seemed to be left speechless for the first time since Denki had met him, while Kirishima gave a hearty chuckle. "I like to think we're friends!" 

"Die! We're not friends, I literally only met you today! I don't have friends!" Bakugou finally seemed to find his voice, screaming defensively as Kirishima continued to laugh. Denki smiled, understanding Kirishima's initiative. 

Have a conversation that lasts at least five minutes with someone, and they are crowned your friend. It was his tactic with Iida. 

"I mean, I guess we've only known each other for a limited amount of time, but I have a good feeling about you, man. You may not think that we're friends yet, but I know we are... In here." Denki poked his head out from underneath his bunk to see Kirishima clutching his hand over his heart. It struck a cord in him to see someone doing a salute correctly, but he managed to push the sadness down.

"That was absolutely beautiful," Aoyama said, his voice wobbling with emotion as he gave a small round of applause for Kirishima's speech. Bakugou made some colourful complaints under his breath, and uttered a few death threats to everyone in the room before turning away from them dismissively. 

"So, do you have any other friends here, Kirishima?" Satou asked, having neatly packed away the cloth that had held the pastries. "It honestly feels like everyone knows at least someone else here. I was the only one to join from my village." 

"I'm your friend, aren't I?" Denki piped up suddenly, sitting up in his bed. He was careful not to hit his head this time, still being cursed with a headache from his mistake earlier. 

"Yeah, yeah. You're my friend." 

"Yes!" Denki cried triumphantly, giving Hanta's mattress an adventurous poke. It earned a surprised cry from above, which made Denki feel even more victorious. "You can be best friends with Satou all you want, Hanta! My new best friend is Kirishima now!" 

"Actually, I think my best friend is Bakugou." 

"WHAT-"

"Best bro." 

"WHAT THE FUCK-" 

"Baku-bro!" 

"I WILL FUCKING KILL YOU-"

Seeming to sense his incoming doom, Kirishima steered the conversation away from Bakugou. "Anyway, in answer to your question, Satou, I do have one more friend here. I mean, if you could really call her that..." 

The atmosphere in the room changed in an instant, everyone in the room leaning forward on instinct. 

"Her?!?" Denki and Hanta cried in unison, both equally disbelieving. Did Kirishima seriously have a girlfriend? 

"Is there something you need to tell us, mon ami?" Aoyama joined the interrogation. 

"Only if you want to, though," Ojiro added hurriedly, good-natured enough to rid Kirishima of some of the pressure his roommates were currently piling onto him. 

"Well," Kirishima started, oblivious to the others' astonishment. "You remember Ashido from earlier-?" 

"Your girlfriend is Ashido?!?" Denki's voice raised an octave in his shock, and he felt his voice crack painfully. Curse adolescence.

Kirishima finally seemed to gather what his cabin mates were implying, and his cheeks flushed a fierce shade of red, one that almost managed to match his hair. 

"Woah, woah, woah, I didn't mean it like that! We're from the same village, but we barely talked to each other before the Titan attack, so that's why I said I wasn't sure if I could call her a friend..." He trailed off, sharp-toothed grin slipping for a moment as the mood grew sombre. 

Denki sat back slightly, recovering from his surprise, only to be overtaken by something else entirely. Kirishima had also been in the Titan attack? Denki never would have guessed that, and he was sure that wasn't down to his low intelligence and bad deduction skills. From the moment he had laid eyes on the redhead, Kirishima to be seemed nothing but a cheerful teenager who was keen to make new friends, the exact opposite of the typical Wall Maria residents Denki had pictured before arriving. 

Then again, from what he knew of her so far, Ashido didn't seem like she had suffered a life-changing tragedy like that either. 

"Dude... I'm, uh... Sorry you had to go through that," Hanta said, breaking the silence first. No one else had the heart to say anything - even Bakugou had fallen uncharacteristically silent.

"It's fine, really!" Kirishima replied hurriedly, dragging a hand through his hair to make it stand up even more. "Man, I knew that would make everything super depressed... I wasn't even affected that much. My parents had some connections, so we got enough food and a roof over our heads when we moved into Wall Rose." 

The mood lightened up slightly at that, and Denki smiled, relieved. He had heard stories about how hellish, crowded and poor the towns of Wall Rose had become after the Titan attack, with refugees starving in every nook of every alley. He was glad Kirishima had been alright throughout. 

"Mashirao and I are also from Wall Maria-" 

"Yuuga! We weren't supposed to tell anyone about that, remember?" Ojiro interrupted agitatedly. "Like Kirishima said, it makes everyone sad to mention it. And if Tooru gets mad that we told, I will blame it on you."

"So? The girl will gossip anyway. And besides, it will give more openings for conversation! Feel free to ask me anything about my life before this!" Aoyama brushed Ojiro off, playing with his hair as his purple eyes watched the others expectantly. 

"Wow... So many of you guys are from such exotic places..." Satou said slowly, voicing what Denki had been freaking out over for almost the entire afternoon. He seemed to take the hint that Kirishima and Ojiro weren't too keen on talking about their pasts (Aoyama an exception,) and was trying to steer away from the topic of Titans. "My village was completely normal." 

"Yeah, same here..." Hanta spoke from above, and Denki could just imagine the toothy grin he was giving. "Our village was actually boring, right, Denki?" 

"Right!" Denki confirmed, grimacing as he remembered. "Just an average village... Nothing exciting ever happened there." He paused, glancing in Bakugou's direction. The blond had been silent for quite a long time, and Denki was tempted to bring him back into the conversation. 

"Bakugou, where are you from?" Perhaps asking him about himself would gain some more points in the friendship area. 

"Fuck off." 

Perhaps not. However, Denki wasn't willing to give up. 

"No, come on! I think I literally heard you growl when uh... Midoriya, I think his name was, spoke earlier."

"I said, fuck off." 

"Are you from the Underground City as well?" Kirshima joined in, directing an encouraging glance at Bakugou. "I was kind of confused by that to be honest, I'd never even heard of the Underground City before. Does anyone else know what it is?" 

Muttered 'nope's answered Kirishima's question, and he gave a nonchalant shrug, turning his attention expectantly back to Bakugou. 

"Fine, since you're all being so annoying about it... I did live in the Underground City, and Deku lived there too." 

"Deku?" Ojiro questioned, earning another glare from Bakugou. No one dared ask again, and instead let Bakugou continue with his explanation. 

"It's basically what it sounds like, for those of you dumb enough not to understand." Denki felt red eyes land on him. "A city underground, beneath Mitras. Any of you heard of that place?" Six heads shook in unison. "Dumbasses. Anyway, it's super poor, and there are loads of criminals and whatnot. Tons of tough people there, beating each other up. That's pretty much all there is to it."

Bakugou finished his short speech and leant back against the wall, expression guarded as if asking anyone if they wanted to challenge him. Denki realised with a start that he was self-conscious.

"That's so... Manly!" Kirishima exclaimed, earning a few surprised glances. "To survive in a place like that... You're a really cool guy, Baku-bro!"

Once again, Bakugou seemed to be left speechless. Denki frowned, thinking over what Bakugou had said. Even from those few sentences describing the Underground City, he had already got a clear image of it in his mind, and it was fairly unpleasant. He could only wonder how someone as tame and fragile-looking as Midoriya would have survived down there. Perhaps he had some sort of superpower that he wasn't telling anyone about. 

Denki snorted quietly at the thought. 

He was too busy imagining the weird and wonderful hidden strengths of Midoriya that he didn't notice when their rickety cabin door swung open to reveal Aizawa, looking as exhausted as always. 

"Dinner's ready. Kaminari, don't forget dish duty." 

Denki sighed and slid out from his bunk, glancing over his shoulder to check that it looked comfortable enough for him to collapse into when he got back. What he found was... Horrifying. 

"Where did those crumbs come from?!?" He shrieked, staring down at the flakes of pastry that were dotted out across his blanket. 

"It's your fucking fault for being a clumsy ass," Bakugou answered shortly as he stepped outside, giving his first smile since Denki had met him. Well, it wasn't really a smile, more of an over-satisfied grin at seeing someone else suffer. 

"Bakugou!" Aizawa called, ignoring Denki as he cried into Hanta's shoulder for the third time that day. "Dish duty." 

"WHAT THE FUCK-?" 

\--------------------

It was astonishing how a simple dinner of soup and bread could make Denki so hungry. He'd been stuffing his face with pastry about half an hour ago, but that didn't make him any less ravenous. 

He stood at the front of the dining hall, wooden tray clutched in his hands. Hanta made his way over to join him with two glasses of water, and placed one on the empty area of Denki's tray. 

"Dude... Where do we sit...?" 

The dining hall, despite being quite moderately sized, had somehow managed to cram over twenty long tables in, with benches surrounding them for people to sit on. Lamps hung the walls, warm golden glow outlining the tables, and their occupants. 

Thanks to being one of the last cabins called in for dinner, Denki and Hanta found themselves with every table occupied, and the impossible decision of picking one to sit at. 

Denki's first idea had been to try and find one of his other friends to sit with, which had actually proven to be quite hard. Iida was already there, sitting at one of the central tables. He would have been an option, if not for every single seat around him being taken up. Denki recognised Midoriya, and there was also a girl with short brown hair who seemed to be permanently attached to Iida's arm. She was wearing his glasses, for some reason. The rest of the benches were taken up by unfamiliar faces, all talking eagerly to Iida and the brown-haired girl. 

Denki could only envy how they had managed to get so popular. 

Satou had found himself a place with an odd-looking group, which included the edgy guy from earlier - Denki had forgotten his name - and the purple-haired chic who had called him an idiot. 

Denki didn't think he could face her again. 

For some reason, Ojiro and Aoyama had managed to attract a similar crowd to Iida's, all of the benches on their table occupied. There was also another plain-looking girl beside Ojiro, who Denki had failed to notice at first. Aoyama seemed to be loving the attention, while Ojiro had a familiar nervous grin on his face. 

"I'm so scared right now..." Hanta said quietly, voicing Denki's fears. What if they just didn't find a place to sit, and had to eat standing up? Denki would probably use Hanta as a table. 

They did have the option of sitting with someone who wasn't currently a friend. Denki's eyes travelled to a table right at the back, which was completely empty apart from an odd-looking male sitting resignedly in the corner. His neatly-combed hair was split directly down the middle, the left half a fiery red that reminded Denki of Kirishima, and the right a flawless white. He looked interesting, but had an icy glare that he directed at anyone who even seemed to consider sitting with him.

It was obvious that he wanted to be alone. 

"Hey, how about over there?" Hanta said suddenly, nodding in the direction of another table. Denki followed his gaze, and found himself staring into a pair of extremely angry red eyes. 

Bakugou also sat by himself, ripping his bread to shreds with his teeth like an animal. While the half-boy kept people away with his coldness, the power of Bakugou's rage alone seemed to create an impenetrable forcefield around the area around him. 

"Dude, are you crazy? Don't forget that you told him he could beat me up, so there's no way we're sitting with him alone," Denki hissed back. "I'm still salty about that, by the way." 

Bakugou also obviously wanted to be alone. 

And so, obviously, Kirishima appeared out of now where and sat down next to him. Despite their distance, Denki could still hear every curse Bakugou uttered at the redhead.

"WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?!" 

"Sitting with you, man! What does it look like?" Kirishima gave Bakugou's shoulder an experimental nudge, before tucking into his meal, ignoring the blond's continued insults. 

"Hey, is this Bakugou?" A feminine voice spoke, one that Denki recognised immediately. Ashido bounced over to their table and plopped her tray down beside Kirishima's, sliding onto the bench to glance over his shoulder at the hostile bear. 

"On second thought, maybe we should sit there!" Denki announced loudly, pacing over to the table with an amused Hanta following closely behind. 

He placed his tray on the table, directly opposite Ashido, and gave what he hoped was an extremely attractive grin. "I'm Kaminari Denki, I'm single and-" 

"Oh, you're the salute guy!" Ashido interrupted brightly, orange eyes flashing with recognition. 

Denki suddenly lost his appetite, and hid his head in Hanta's shoulder. 

"Ah, you see, this particular Denki gets very nervous when interacting with the opposite gender," Hanta said slowly, patting Denki on the back. "It may not seem like it, but his species gets very insecure. I think it would be better for you to tread carefully around the saluting issue, so that he does not face extinction."

"Um... What?" Poor Ashido looked very confused, glancing at Kirishima as if asking for his assistance. He gave a simple shrug. 

"What soy sauce face is trying to say, is that he's a fucking drama queen." 

Denki began to cry. 

"Also, how come those guys are so popular?" Hanta said, seeming to try and steer the conversation away from his best friend's humiliation. He pointed in the direction of Iida's table. "I mean, Denki and I met the dude with blue hair earlier, and I dunno… He didn't really seem like the kind of person who would have so many people crowding around him like that." 

Kirishima and Ashido glanced in that direction, while Bakugou didn't seem to care. 

"Oh, those guys?" Ashido said eventually. "Well, the girl there, Uraraka, she's in my cabin, and from Shiganshina. Since she went through the Titan attack, people might be gathering there to ask her about it." 

Denki straightened up, tilting his head as he thought. Did that mean Iida had also lived in Shiganshina? It would explain why Uraraka seemed so attached to him, and his unexpected popularity. 

"But you guys were in a Titan attack as well, right?" Hanta said, addressing Kirishima and Ashido with his question. 

The redhead shrugged at that. "I guess." 

"I think Bakugou's scariness is keeping everyone away, though," Ashido added playfully, seeming to share Kirishima's fearlessness of the blond. 

"Hey, I thought that as well!" Denki said, beginning to cheer up. "It's like he has a magic forcefield or something." 

"I fucking hate all of you."

"I think that's Bakugou-language for 'I love you,'" Kirishima said, wiping a fake tear from his eye. "So manly." 

They ate in silence for a little while, Denki still caught on the idea of Iida being from Wall Maria. If that was true... Then he was beginning to feel slightly guilty about how he had treated him earlier. He hadn't been mean, but now that he thought about it, he could have been a little more respectful. 

"Man, if Iida really is from Shiganshina, I feel kinda bad," Denki said after a short pause, causing all heads to turn to him. "Hanta and I kinda… Were dumb." 

"You're gonna have to elaborate," Bakugou said flatly. 

"I mean, we just talked a little, and I guess it annoyed him," Hanta explained, seeming to share the same guilty look as Denki. 

There was a sudden clatter of spoon meeting bowl, and the best friends glanced up in surprise to look at Kirishima, who was staring down at his tray with an intense expression. Ashido leaned forward, a similar glint in her eyes. 

"Look, you guys can't do that." 

Both Denki and Hanta paused, not completely sure of what she was trying to say. 

"Uh..." 

"Treating us like we're fragile, man," Kirishima spoke, looking up. "Obviously you shouldn't make insensitive Titan jokes or anything, that basically goes without saying, but we are normal people that have just been through some rough stuff. You don't need to act extra careful around us or anything." 

"Yeah. If anything, we want to forget that ever happened," Ashido added, giving an apologetic smile as she realised how forlorn Denki's mood had become. "Anyway! Kirishima was telling me that you guys got stuck on dish duty by Aizawa." 

Denki groaned, having completely forgotten about that for a few blissful minutes. "Yeah... Hanta actually didn't, but he thought he'd come and help out." 

"Well, that's exactly what we were thinking!" She continued, grinning brightly. "It'll be quicker if five of us do it, right?"

Kirishima gave an affirmative nod, and the atmosphere seemed to lighten at their revelation. Even Bakugou swore a little less, gradually becoming more and more comfortable with the group. At least, as comfortable as Bakugou could get.

Denki was just happy that he was having a good time with his friends. 

Yes, they were definitely his friends. And he was certain they knew it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This took me S O L O N G.
> 
> Also, I forgot to mention at the beginning that I have decided to drop the use of honorifics. Attack On Titan doesn't use them, and I'm always really nervous of using the wrong ones for the wrong people, so I thought it would be simplest if I just stopped using them :) Sorry if it caused any confusion.


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